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Pot Bellied Pig
Ms. Holly
30.4694, -83.6302
Field Notes
Description:
A full grown Vietnamese potbellied pig can be anywhere from 100 to 250 pounds and not be overweight, and is still considered a miniature potbellied pig. The average size seems to be 120 to 150 pounds but just like humans, pigs do come in various sizes and weights. With proper feeding and exercise your pig will grow to its predetermined genetic size. You can affect your pet pig's weight through overfeeding, underfeeding, or a lack of exercise (just like us!). This is not a good idea and could cause serious health problems!!
The average full grown pot bellied pig is anywhere from 16-26 inches tall at their shoulders.
There is much controversy as to how long their lifespans are, but most sites list them anywhere from 10-20 (most commonly 10-15). This can fluctuate depending on the care and feeding.
Believe it or not, they are actually clean animals (if not placed in a pen full of mud!) no smell like a dog, and they don't get fleas or ticks! They do shed, and it is referred to as "Blowing their coat" as they tend to loose almost all of their hair at once. When Holly blows her coat she is left with a Mohawk of hair down the ridge of her back, and the rest of her looks very gray rather than black. The first photo she is in the midst of blowing her coat. Their hair is very course, and is often used in making paint brushes.
Notes:
My funny looking indoor dog :) Ms. Holly will be celebrating her 10th birthday this December. She is very protective over me, more so then either of my dogs. She knows several tricks including 'turn around' 'give piggy kisses - bumps her nose against my chin' - sits on command (like a dog, which is not natural for them). She was very tiny when I got her, and could actually sit in the palm of my hand. She was far too young to be taken from her momma- I rescued her from a dumb man selling them at the flea market. He had 6 in a small plastic milk crate. It was blistery cold here that day and when I picked Ms. Holly up, she didn't make a sound (normally they will squeal), she quickly ran up my leather jacket sleeve to get warm. I knew I had to have her. Though I did have to pay the man for her...when I took her for her vet check, we found out that most likely she would have died if I did not buy her. She was full of hog mites, (which can cause scabies in humans), had a bad respiratory infection, and wasn't yet really eating solid foods! Needless to say I called several places to complain including our local humane society - wasn't but a few weeks later the man who sold her was out of business!!!
She was raised indoors and taught to use a litter box - though she does go out with me, I don't leave her outside as I lost my first pig to a dog attack! (long story) I surely didn't want to go through that again, so she lives indoors for the most part and only goes out supervised. She gets along with both my Beagle and my Sharpe/pitbull mix, and even my loud cockatoo!
The last photos of her are actually photos I just took of pictures hanging on my office wall - thus the fuzziness - are her baby photos taken just after I got her - note how tiny she is compared to my hand and foot. The tiny harness she is wearing - I still have and won't even fit around her nose now! The second photo she is shown with my beloved shepherd lab mix Sweetpea (who left us for rainbow bridge this past Christmas :( So you can truly see just how much Holly has grown.
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